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Great UX and Security – How Can They Go Together?

These days for most of us belonging to internet savvy generation faster, smoother and least time consuming access to what we need became the number one priority. With robust multi-device accessibility, cloud support and glitch free web experience we just can access anything, any time and from any device. While being accustomed to this overwhelmingly great user experience, most often security concerns just stay behind. The prime focus for most users has always been to get things quickly than securely.

Though the security and privacy concerns came into the limelight in the post-Snowden era, still majority of security flaws just remain unnoticed due to persistent focus on accessibility and user experience. Designing security measures without consideration for the user experience or designing user experience without security measures, such one sided approach is bound to fail. A great user experience offering convenience and ease of access must not be accompanied with a whole range of security flaws and similarly, a stringent security must not lead to inconvenient, slow and unsatisfactory experience for the users. Remember, consistent focus on mobile app UI testing is important to ensure a coherent and complimenting role of these two elements. Until and unless both security and UX design make a balanced and collaborative act, this gap will remain.

Let us discuss on some key ways to explain how great user experience and security measures can go together.

Design it simple, clutter free and fast paced
What your users need give it to them and nothing else. All your design maneuvers should be based upon this thumb rule. Now, consider how fast you can provide them access to what they need and how easily they can find what they need. So, the first priority is simple and clutter free design and then it is important to ensure faster loading speed and lastly you need to provide them uncomplicated, easy navigation.

The design should be simple and explain the purpose by itself.

Make sure that time and effort needed to use a feature or go to a page can be kept to a minimum.

Secondly, optimize all the elements and files for a faster page loading speed.

Relieve your site from unnecessary clutter to optimize viewing and ease of access to relevant content.

In using security features remove the unnecessary barriers or additional steps to optimize user experience and reducing required time for accessing something.

Explain before asking user to share information
Security features may be important for your website but the end user really has little interest in it. So if the steps involved in a security process seem cumbersome and time consuming you may actually lose the user. This happens with some websites having too many security barriers. In the process of implementing the security feature always keep end users in mind. Security process may require asking users for revealing some information but make sure you provide them a valid explanation while asking such things. Most users feel such questions redundant or even threatening to their privacy at times, but a valid explanation concerning security needs is likely to convince them.

Test both aspects repeatedly
UX designers know the importance of repeated testing for fault finding and gaining insights on what could be optimized or to what extent to make the user experience better. As for security measures this is doubly crucial because it may cause hindrance in the otherwise faultless UX or just may not work at all. So, for testing how the UX actually works and how the implemented security feature goes with it, you need to test UX it again and again.

Before making the app live let it be used by your own people at the company. Take their diverse feedback and make a plan to fix certain issues or scopes of optimization.

While going live with your app, ask feedback directly from users. This will provide you broader scope of optimizing and customizing the app for different user needs.

Communicate users in easy terms
Last but not the least important aspect is to communicate users regarding security features in as easy a language as possible. Do not have a complacent attitude as far as user understanding is concerned. If you want to warn your users for a potentially unsafe activity or security threat or any type of security concern, you need to make them understand what went wrong or might go wrong. You need to explain things in simple terms to garner further cooperation from them. In some sites loaded with software enabled applications and features it is recommended to include a FAQ page and if possible a tutorial to make them learn about using various features and how they can use them to their advantages.

For providing a great user experience you do not need to compromise on security measures. Always make the security feature simple, always explain users the reason while asking a security question, give them warning message in easy to understand language, help them using complicated features with tutorial and FAQ and lastly test the app several times before or after going live. By following these guidelines you can pave the way for superb user experience while maintaining the right security measures.